Beijing investigates fake followers of celebrities
BEIJING: When Cai Xukun of the idol band Nine Percent posted his newest song, Wait Wait Wait, on Weibo, about one-third of users (roughly 100 million people) re-shared it.
This level of popularity has granted him a slew of commercial opportunities, from Chanel to L’Oreal to even the NBA League. But then, Cai was caught by China’s state media CCTV for faking his online popularity.
The latest investigative report by China’s central television exposed a rather surprising behind-the-scenes look into the country’s grey industry of follower buying. The move not only named certain celebrities, like Cai, but also sent out a strong message that the government is quite serious about regulating this practice.
In the investigative video, CCTV journalists demonstrated how easy it is to find an agency in China to boost an account’s digital popularity.
Using Alibaba’s Taobao marketplace or within Tencent’s WeChat system, one could quickly match with a professional agent who offers a variety of services.
For example, in what it called its basic package that costs about US$1.50 (RM6.30), a buyer can gain 400 followers on Weibo 100 shares of a specific post.
Journalists showed a WeChat hiring notice that recruits people to follow and like posts on Weibo and Douyin. CCTV also said that Chinese consumers have long been fed up with this illegal activity and are now demanding greater transparency and authenticity.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a Chinese marketing manager, working at an Italian luxury brand, said that “We know about this phenomenon more or less and we were not too against it because we also needed good figures to please our headquarters.” or